"Pocket watch? I brought it!"
Zheng Qing froze for a second, then immediately understood. Mr. Wu was probably asking about the twelfth birthday gift he had given him long ago: a silver case, brass hands, ticking as it ran.
Zheng Qing had used this watch for six years. It had remained as accurate as ever, never losing even a minute. And because he had maintained it properly, its case showed no trace of rust, always looking like a new watch.
But it only looked new—apart from its precise timekeeping and spotless case, there was not the slightest thing about this pocket watch that differed from other pocket watches. It could not even grow a humanoid face on its dial, like most wizards' timepieces, to report the time and remind its owner of appointments whenever needed, like Dylan's pocket watch.
Even though that watch had a terrible temper, worse than Dylan's wardrobe mirror.
In fact, Zheng Qing had tested the limits of this pocket watch more than once. Especially after receiving his admission notice from First University, for certain reasons he could not speak of, he had repeatedly used Detection Magic on it.
The results were both encouraging and disappointing.
The encouraging part was that, aside from its precise timekeeping and pristine case, the watch really did possess other unusual qualities.
For example, Zheng Qing had discovered another trait: it was immune to Detection Magic. Whether it was the low-level revealing spell "Aparecium" or the advanced investigative spell "Jinjin Qi Ming," neither could stir the slightest ripple when cast upon the pocket watch. If the watch had not meant so much to him, Zheng Qing would have wanted to test the Karma Fire Spell or the Great Disintegration Spell on it—or toss it into Aqua Regia for a soak.
But the